Bail for cans, buckets, &amp;c.



J. F. TINER.

BAIL FOR CANS, BUCKETS, c.

APPLICATION FIL ED MAIL 10. 1920.

` fatemi Nom-2:'1920r j UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN FRANCIS TINER, OF UVALDE, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF T0 SOL uIES'I, 2D,

OF UVALDE, TEXAS.

BAIL FOR CANS, BUCKE'IS, &0.

specification of Letters Patent. 'Patented NOV, 23, 192@ Application filed March 10, 1920. Serial No. 364,847.

To all whom z' may con-cern Be it known that I, J oHN F. TINER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Uvalde, in the county of Uvalde and State of T eXas, have invented a new and useful Bail for Cans, Buckets, &c., of whichthe following is a specification. y

This invention relates to bails for cans, buckets or other receptacles.

The object is to provide a bail for this purpose which, by a special arrangement of the eyes or sockets formed in the body of the receptacle, may be readily engaged therewith, which operation is followed by a certain manipulation of the bail to permanently pivot the latter in position in the usual manner and to prevent the accidental separat-ion thereof, and which, by a reverse manipulation of the bail, may be readily disconnected from the receptacle when desired.

Another object is to provide a detachable bail for cans, buckets, etc., which may be bundled and shipped separately from the receptacle, thus rendering the latter capable of being packed in cases to occupy a minimum amount of space, there being no projecting ears, or sockets carried by the same, as is the case with ordinary receptacles of this class.

A full and complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from a consideration of the followingr detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawingforming part of this specification, with the understanding, however, that the invention is not confined to any strict conformity with the showing of the drawing, but may be changed and modified so long as such changes and modifications mark no ma terial departure from the salient features of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

In the drawing, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures:

Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly broken away, of the upper portion of a can or bucket, showing the improved bail applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, showing the bail in lowered position and indicating in dotted lines the position of the latter for disengagingvit from the receptacle; j

1g. 3 is a diametric vertical sectional View;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional view, looking from the inside and showing more clearly the interlocking of the bail with the can;

Fig. 5 -is a horizontal sectional view through the connection of the bail with the receptacle.

In cans and sheet metal buckets of the lordinary form of construction in connection with which a wire handle or bail is used, it is the customary practice to form the sockets or ears for connection with said bail.

in such manner as to project from the sides of the receptacle, thus taking up considerable room when the same are packed in cases for shipment, or else they are projected up from the sides to extend beyond the top of the receptacle, thus causing considerable lost space at the top of the shipping case; and in addition to these two disadvantages, the permanently attached bails themselves materially interfere with the close packing of the cans in the case.

In order to eliminate these defects in cans or buckets of this class for shipping purposes, it has been found most advantageous to provide a bail which may be shipped separately or packed separately in a shipping case along withthe cans, which should be so formed as to be placed in position in touching relation and without interference by any projecting parts, the said bail being so constructed as to be readily applied to the can by any person and manipulated or bent in such manner as to cause certain coacting locking'means, carried respectively by the bail and the can, to be pivotally connected together, and at the same time be impossible of separation through accident.

Having these objects in View, the invention consists first in providing the can body l at diametrically opposite points and adjacent to the top 2 thereof, with bail sockets or eyes formed in the following manner. The metal composing the can body 1 is pressed inwardly at diametrically opposite points a slight distance t0 form round, concavo-convex sockets or depressions 3, which loo are then closed or sealed by a circular metal disk 4 of an equal diameter with the said depression, and adapted to be soldered or otherwise secured tothe wall of the can at the edges of the depression, and with its outer face lying flush with the sides of the can, as clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 5.

The closure plate or disk 4 is provided with a central hole 5 having a downwardly extending branch 6, thus providing an entrance opening for the bail very much resembling an ordinary key hole, and it may be designated as a key-hole shaped slot.

The bail 7 when properly applied to the bucket in the manner intended, has the form of the ordinary stout wire bails used on cans, buckets and similar receptacles, having the curved main portion and' the downwardly extending substantially parallel arms 8 which are bent at their terminals into laterally extending pintles 9, directed toward each other and adapted to enter the central holes 5 of the plates 4.

At the inner end of each pintle 9, a lug 10 is formed, said lug extending inwardly in the same direction and in the same longitudinal plane as the bail and in spaced relation to the same, and adapted, when the bail is in position, to engage against the inner faceof the disk or plate 4 within the socket, and to extend upwardly and parallel to the arms 8 when the bail is upright, and away from the branch slot 6. lVhen in this position, it is impossible to pass the pintles 9 through the holes 5 and slot G, by reason of the fact that the curved portion of the bail 7 comprising the handle will strike one side or the other of the can when the lugs 10 will still be out of alinement with the said branch slots 6, and thus prevent the bail from becoming detached from the can.

The bails are to be shipped separately from the cans as has been stated and bent in the form indicated in dotted lines in Fig. i

2 of the drawing, that is to say each arm 8 of the bail 7 is to be similarly bent at right angles to form relatively short inner arms 8a where connected to the pintles 9 and thus bringing the major portion 8b of the curved bail into perpendicular relation thereto, the lugs 10 being parallel to the short arms 8a.

When it is desired to apply the bail to the can, the former being bent as described, it is only necessary to spring the short arms 8a apart sufficiently to separate the pintles 9 so that they may freely pass into the holes 5, the major portion 8b of the bail hugging thel sides of the can body and extending at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the same, while the said short arms 8a are substantially parallel to said axis, when the lugs l0 are in exact alinement with the branch slots 6, and, by releasing the arms 8,

may freely pass through thesame by reason of the inherent tendency of the arms to approach each other due to the spring of the metal forming the bail. After the bail is thus applied, it may be easily straightened out so that the arms 8^ and the portion 8" are in alinement as indicated in full lilies in Fig. 2 of the drawing, when, as will be seen, the bail is permanently connected to the can or bucket and it is impossible to remove the same until after the bail is again bent in like manner.

From the foregoing it will be seen that an extremely simple and cheaply manufactured bail for cans, buckets and the like has been provided, and that the latter may be easily arranged for co-action with the said bail to render the same readily attached or removed from the connection, and that the same may be packed for shipment with great economy of space.

I wish it to be understood that the novel construction of bail ear or socket may be used with other forms of hails, and that the construction of the bail is not dependent upon the specific method of forming the socket or ear, and that these two elements are capable of separate or conjoint use and I desire my claims to be so construed.

lVhat is claimed is:

1. In combination with a bucket or can body having at diametrically opposite` points key-hole shaped slots, a bail having a curved main portion and substantially parallel arms, laterally extending pintles at the ends of the arms, said pintles extending toward each other, and a lug formed on the end of each pintle and extending inwardly toward the main portion of the bail and in the same longitudinal plane therewith, whereby the bail may be disconnected from the can only by bending the bail at an intermediate point so as to bring the ends of the bail parallel with the longitudinal axis of.

the can.

2. The combination of a bucket or can body having diametrically opposite sockets extending into the interiorI thereof, said sockets having their outer walls formed with entrance openings with downwardly extending slots communicating therewith, the inner walls of the sockets being closed, and a curved wire bail having inwardly directed pintles at its opposite terminals, lugs carried by said pintles in spaced relation to the arms of the bail and extending parallel thereto toward the looped or handle end of the bail, the arms of said bail being adapted to be bent at right angles to bring the handle portion of the bail in hugging relation to the side of the can body and the inner ends of the arms parallel to the longitudinal axis of the can, at which point the lugs are in alinement with the slots and the pintles may be freed from the sockets.

3. The combination with a bucket or can body having diametrically opposite sockets,

seid'sockets having their outer Walls Jformed with key-hole shaped slots, and a bail in one piece having pintles at its ends to enter said slots, said pintles being so constructed that they may be disconnected from said slots only by bending the bail at an intermediate point so as to bring the ends ofthe bail carrying the pintles n a. plane parallel with the longitudinal exis ol the can.

In testimony, that l claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto ellixed my signuture.

JOHN FRANCS TIMER. 

